Don’t give up. There can be hope in the midst of chronic pain. Create a new chronic pain perspective.

A Drop in the Bucket

I met with someone from my House of Representative’s office yesterday afternoon about how chronic pain affects our lives.

I think it went well. I presented the information in four parts: life with chronic pain after the CDC recommendations, addiction, chronic pain, and suicide, and legislative solutions. He seemed to listen and wrote a few things down.

I have done what I can by having this meeting. What this office does with the information is up to them. I don’t know if I made a difference or not, but I hope that they will remember our meeting when any legislation involving pain and pain research comes up.

I think everyone should do this kind of thing at least once even though it’s not easy to do for someone with a chronic illness. It took me many emails and three months to have the time to put together a notebook of information to leave with their office.

I am not naive thinking this one chat with my Congressman’s office will make an immediate difference. We have an unbelievably tangled mess with the opioids, chronic pain, and why people become addicted. To fix these colliding emergencies will not be easy.

I “put my drop in the bucket,” so to speak. Other people need to do the same, or the bucket will never be filled with individual drops that make it overflow showing a need for action by our government to protect people with pain.

We need to be brave by speaking out, especially about the need for expedited pain research. Everyone might as well get comfortable with the turning tide on opioids. It is not going away.

If anyone wants ideas or information about how to speak to your congressman, please message me. I will be glad to help you make a difference in the chronic pain community.

6 thoughts on “A Drop in the Bucket”

I’m thrilled your were able to get on his calendar so quickly. You’ve taken the first step, now everyone has to educate themselves on the Bills on the table and we all have to speak to the points of the bill. You lead, opened the door. As you learn about bills in your state which helps/hurts people with chronic illness you can educate us on the language to use when talking to anyone on the important subject. You were blessed to feel able to take a meeting.
🙂

With the hurricanes hitting our area and the campaigning, yes, I was blessed to have the meeting. Hopefully, I will be able to keep touching base with him and keep our concerns on the table instead of being forgotten and ignored.

I know you are determined, the challenge now is get others involved in their own city and states. Grassroots advocacy is the hardest. You’ve opened the door. Maybe you could right an article for a couple of papers around there to get the word out. Much less stress on body. You come first, you can’t forget that ever.

Taking the issue of chronic illness to a legislative level is something rarely touched on in illness communities. Thank you for the fresh perspective!
Also, do you consider doing book reviews? http://www.cadencemcmanimon.wordpress.org